Perjury Prosecution

The Laws of Manu state “Either the court must not be entered, or the truth must be spoken; a man who either says nothing or speaks falsely, becomes sinful.” –

Right from ancient civilizations, Courts were considered divine. The judge, be it the king, chief, priest were lineage of this divinity. Indeed, it was commonly believed that the diety descended and entered into the judge at the time of the judgment[1]. Hence, we still in India refer the judge as “Lordship”. Most litigants who came to Court had to come with clean hands, failing which the witnesses/ parties/ litigants were punished. The punishment brought fear in a person’s mind to tell prevaricated statements in Courts. With no truth, no justice can be delivered, hence, came the concept of perjury.

Perjury is a criminal offence for intentionally making false statement on oath or falsifying or fabricating documents or concealing material facts or making false or inaccurate statements knowingly, whether orally or in writing, during a judicial proceeding before any court of law. Criminal culpability is attached when the Declarant/ Deponent falsely asserts the truth of statements (made or to be made) which are material to the outcome of the proceeding. In order to maintain sanctity of legal proceedings in courts, a witness/ party appearing before a Court, through his pleader or in person, must not mislead or misrepresentation and/or should not conceal material facts with a design to gain some advantage or benefit at the hands of the court.

Section 193 of the Indian Penal Code states “Punishment for false evidence.—Whoever intentionally gives false evidence in any stage of a judicial proceeding, or fabri­cates false evidence for the purpose of being used in any stage of a judicial proceeding, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine, and whoever intentionally gives or fabricates false evidence in any other case, shall be punished with imprisonment of either de­scription for a term which may extend to three years, and shall also be liable to fine.”

Lying in courts must not be encouraged and it amounts to contempt of Court. If every person lies in courts, the Courts would lose their respect to deliver justice. Our firm has dedicated perjury and contempt prosecution service to prosecute witnesses, litigants and even lawyers who have abetted perjury.

Perjury Prosecution – Prosecution Service for giving false evidence, making false statements on oath in Court.

Criminal Contempt Prosecution – means the publication (whether by words, spoken or written, or by signs, or by visible representation, or otherwise) of any matter or the doing of any other act whatsoever which scandalises or tends to scandalise, or lowers or tends to lower the authority of, any court; prejudices, or interferes or tends to interfere with, the due course of any judicial proceeding; or interferes or tends to interfere with, or obstructs or tends to obstruct, the administration of justice in any other manner;

Civil Contempt Prosecution – “civil contempt” means wilful disobedience to any judgment, decree, direction, order, writ or other process of a court or wilful breach of an undertaking given to a court under the Contempt of Courts Act.

Let truth prevail. Engage our counsels who are experts at prosecuting of perjury and contempt in Supreme Court, High Court, District Courts, Tribunals, Magistrate Courts, Perjury in National Company Law Tribunal, etc.

[1] John Noonan, Jr., Bribes: The Intellectual History of a Moral Idea 16 (1984). taken from Richard H. Underwood, False Witness: A Lawyer’s History of the Law of Perjury, 10 Ariz. J. Int’l & Comp. L. 215 (1993)